54 athletes have been named to British Swimming’s World Class Performance Program for the 2018/19 season, including Olympic medalists Adam Peaty, James Guy, Duncan Scott and Siobhan Marie O’Connor.

Following an extensive selection procedure, which takes into account an analysis of athletes’ current and past performances to gauge Olympic medal potential, the chosen athletes are eligible to receive training camp and competition opportunities throughout the season. They also have access to world-class sports science and medicine services, as well as enhanced support from British Swimming performance staff and National Institute of Sport programmes across the UK. Athletes will also receive targeted financial assistance from UK Sport through the World Class Performance Programme’s Athlete Performance Award (APA).

Notable names missing from the 2018/19 season’s Performance Program squad include 2018 Commonwealth Games 400m IM gold and silver medalists Aimee Willmott and Hannah Miley. Both women were named to the 2018 line-up with the following notation, ‘Selected up to and including the Commonwealth Games, reviewed April 2018.’ This time around, it’s Jessica Fullalove, Jarvis Parkinson and British national record holder Jocelyn Ulyett whose funding is on offer through April 2019.

A shot of young blood was injected into the roster in the form of 2016 World Junior Champion and World Championships semi-finalist Freya Anderson, who recently collected 4 relay medals at the 2018 European Championships, as well as 2 relay medals at the Commonwealth Games this year. Teammates Jacob Peters and Nicholas Pyle, both emerging British age national record holders, are also among those selected.

British Swimming National Performance Director Chris Spice said of the selection, “2018 proved a successful one for the World Class programme culminating in our home European Championships where we won our most medals in history (19 in Olympic events). This was on the back of a highly successful meet in Finland with our European Junior squad which has made this selection all the more difficult.

“We selected a much larger team at the European’s than we normally would with seventeen new members selected to the senior team last season. As a result, we unearthed some exciting youngsters and the focus is to maximise our efforts in the next two years.

“We will be returning to our much tighter selection policy next year for the 2019 World Championships in Gwangju as we head into the final year of the 2020 Olympic cycle.

“We look forward to working with the athletes and their coaches to move our performances forward in this very important season.”

Just a friendly reminder that British swimmers Dan Wallace,Andrew Willis,Lizzie Simmonds and Christopher Walker-Hebborn all retired this year. Also, Jazz Carlin, two-time silver medalist from Rio, is taking a break from swimming, with British Swimming stating, “Jazz is taking time out at the moment to get ready for the season after a difficult year with illness and injury.”

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VERY surprised to not see Josh Kenway listed here. Such a promising athlete that never seems to get the respect he deserves.

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2 months ago

Swimmer

I don’t understand how they justify leaving Hannah Miley and Aimee Willmott off and funding some of the other names on there (eg Jocelyn Ulyett, who didn’t have a great year and didn’t even swim at Europeans).

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2 months ago

SwimSwiSwS

Funding relates to Olympic/World Podium probability in either Tokyo or Paris, arguably the two mentioned have vastly higher chance in the short term than most on the list and, must feel somewhat aggrieved at there omission over other athletes.

More interesting the number of athletes based in Loughborough, Bath + Stirling over anyone else!

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2 months ago

Swimmer

How have they satisfied themselves that Abbie wood or Georgia Coates have a better chance than HM/AW of making the team for/performing in Tokyo? It makes no sense. Miley has just had ankle surgery and I don’t think anyone would have been surprised to see her decide to retire after a Home event in Glasgow, but there’s been no announcement to that effect, and I don’t think AW is at the same stage of her career.

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2 months ago

OAC

Genuinely baffling. Seems to be quite a few fringe relay swimmers on this list who are nowhere near individual standard of HM and AW…

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2 months ago

Marley09

Too bad British swimming didn’t publish their “extensive selection criteria” anywhere. It’s puzzling why Willmott and Miley are left off this list. Do they just not like them anymore? Did they retire and I missed the news? Injured? Is this a Scotland/Wales/England rule that my N.American mind can’t figure out?

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2 months ago

About Loretta Race

After 16 years at a Fortune 1000 financial company, long-time swimmer Retta Race decided to change lanes and pursue her sporting passion. She currently is Coach for the Northern KY Swordfish Masters, a team she started up in December 2013, while also offering private coaching. Retta is also an MBA …